A $10 million gift from Laurene and Scott Sperling, through their Sperling Family Charitable Foundation, will name Duke University’s Sperling Center for Jewish Studies, President Vincent E. Price announced Aug. 4. The gift will endow two professorships in Jewish studies, a faculty support fund in the Sperling Center, a fund for graduate education and postdoctoral support, and a lecture fund.

The interdisciplinary Sperling Center sits within Trinity College of Arts & Sciences. Beginning in the 1940s and formally established in 1972, the center now serves as a vibrant hub for the Duke community’s study and exploration of Jewish history, culture, language, and religion.

Laurene Sperling, the immediate past chair of the Board of Trustees, is a 1978 graduate and the parent of two Duke alumni. She is currently a member of the Duke University Health System Board of Directors and the Campaign Council for MADE FOR THIS: The Duke Campaign, the university’s ongoing fundraising and engagement effort.

“We are very grateful to Laurene and Scott for this transformative gift that will support Jewish studies at Duke for generations to come,” Price said. “Through their longstanding commitment to Duke—as parents, volunteers and supporters—the Sperlings have demonstrated an exceptional understanding of and commitment to the university’s mission.”

A $7 million portion of the commitment will endow two professorships, enabling the university to recruit and retain outstanding scholars, enhance Duke’s leadership position in the field, and provide opportunities to expand into areas such as modern Judaism, sparking new research directions and collaborations. Another $1.5 million will endow a faculty support fund.

The graduate education and postdoctoral support portion is endowed at $1 million to meet the greatest needs of students and visiting researchers connected to the Sperling Center. This fund will attract and support promising young scholars, fostering the next generation of Jewish Studies experts. The final $500,000 established an endowed lecture fund to support visiting Jewish studies scholars who will conduct seminars and lectures associated with the center.

“Fundamentally, many parts of Jewish studies are about human flourishing and human understanding,” Laurene Sperling said. “It’s my hope that over the longer term, a real foundation of the center can be that it helps scholars look at ways these studies can inform that flourishing.”

A robust multidisciplinary approach connects the research and fields that inform Jewish studies, providing students with the resources for building nuanced, capacious understandings of Jewish life and thought. The Sperling Center’s current initiatives and activities include:

• Courses across departments and disciplines that cover Jewish studies from antiquity to the present day
• Special events that convene nationally regarded experts and connect faculty from across campus
• A certificate program that enables undergraduates to work closely with internationally renowned faculty
• Graduate and postdoctoral study opportunities with departments and programs across Duke—including History, German, and Asian & Middle Eastern Studies
• Partnerships with Jewish Life at Duke and other organizations in the area—such as the Jewish Heritage Foundation of North Carolina and the Carolina Center for Jewish Studies—to share resources, provide learning opportunities, and promote understandings of Jewish culture in relation to many other identities, cultures, and religions with both local and global impact

“This is a generational opportunity to deepen and modernize Jewish studies at Duke,” said Gary Bennett, dean of Trinity College of Arts & Sciences. “It’s my hope that the Sperling Center can become a galvanizing force that connects students across the social, cultural, and intellectual life of the college.”

The gift will help the center play a much larger role in facilitating timely dialogues on topics such as historical and contemporary conflicts, Jewish life and diaspora, and antisemitism. This funding could be used to create courses aligned with the curriculum to challenge students to think more capaciously about Jewish identities and their relationship to other identities across history and geography. It could also support activities such as a film series, art exhibitions, or other events curated by faculty, students, and staff.

“This transformative gift will enable us to more fully showcase the richness and diversity of Jewish history and culture, which spans more than two millennia and intersects in myriad ways with other identities, communities, and traditions,” said Kata Gellen, director of the Sperling Center. “By creating new opportunities for teaching, scholarship, and dialogue, it will enrich our intellectual community and generate lasting benefits for the university, our faculty, and our students.”

Laurene Sperling recalls that her parents, immigrants from Iraq, were embraced by the Jewish community in Durham when they arrived there. In addition, her father credited education as the chief reason her family was able to thrive in a new country. Sperling hopes that the SCJS will be a welcoming community for all types of people.

“For over a century, the founders’ original vision has served as the bedrock of Duke University, shaping not just the institution, but every individual who has passed through its halls.” Reflecting on her deep connection to the university—as a student, a parent, and a trustee—Laurene noted, “I have found Duke to be remarkably steadfast in its values — intellectually vibrant, deeply committed to a healthy diversity of thought, and anchored in the profound belief that robust discourse is the shortest path to progress.”

It is her sincere hope that the Center will honor this legacy, serving as a beacon for the rigorous and open intellectual exchange that has defined the Duke experience for generations.